My First Flight: From Passenger to Pilot, a Love Affair with Aviation

That’s me in a fighter pilot helmet as a child. 🙂

My name is Chuck Cametti, I’ve had a lot of first flights in my life. Each journey was a unique experience, prominent to me in its own way. Whether it was the first time I flew a plane, the first time I flew a commercial airliner, or even the first time I flew as a passenger, each flight represents a special moment in my lifelong love affair with aviation.

Ever since I can remember, I’ve always been intrigued by the field of aviation and so it was no surprise when my dream of becoming a pilot began at a very young age. I wish I could say the road to turning this dream of mine into a reality was an easy one, but unfortunately, I hit quite a few bumps along the way.

The first (of many) obstacles I encountered came from none other than my own family. As a police officer, my father had hoped that I would also work in civil service and refused to support my dream of becoming a pilot. When it came time to initiate my career path in high school, I only had myself to lean on and used some of my own savings for flying lessons. As I mentioned there were many bumps along my journey, so my obstacles didn’t end there. While undergoing the medical testing required for licensing, I learned that I had a color vision deficiency, which automatically disqualified me from receiving my commercial license.

By the time I went to college I had completely given up my dream of flying for a living, but my passion never left me.

My first flight as a passenger interestingly came after I had already flown a plane (multiple actually). Back then, air travel was considered quite the affair. Men dressed in suits and women in elegant dresses or skirt (definitely no slacks or sweatpants). Pilots with their striped epaulets followed by their flight crew (or should I say entourage) turned heads as they walked through the terminal and I remember being awe-stricken by just how glamorous their lives seemed as we boarded the plane from Boston to Paris. To think that I would never be able to pursue this vision of mine, that was the moment my heart sunk and I, at last, accepted my plight.

I continued with my lessons to at least keep flying as a hobby, not knowing then that by doing so, I was paving the way for my piloting dreams to become a reality. I earned a degree in accounting and started a career in the field after graduation. Meanwhile, in the commercial flying world, times were changing, With renewed hope, I decided to get another medical exam with a new doctor where I learned that there was a special waiver I could apply for that would give me the opportunity to obtain a license! As soon as I walked out of that office I set out to do everything possible to become a commercial pilot. Things moved pretty quickly from that moment onwards.

Luckily for me, formal training wasn’t required, and thanks to the flying lessons I kept up with, I already had my required flight hours. I landed my first job as a real pilot for Pilgrim Airlines, a small airline based in Groton, Connecticut. I remember the first time I boarded that 19-seat plane… it felt like I was walking onto a 747. The twin otter was huge compared to the small four-seater that I learned to fly on. The flight route was short, from Groton to New York City and back, but it really was a dream come true.

To this day, every time I sit down in the cockpit I still feel that same excitement that I did on that nineteen-seat plane.

As years passed, that twin otter plane became a 727, a DC-10, an L-1011 until finally, it became that 747. The short route between Groton and New York lengthened into trips to Australia, and Africa, and Asia. The rest is history.Flying has awarded me some of the greatest gifts in my life. It is because of flying that I met my wife at the airport in Philadelphia where she was working. It has given me lifelong friends. And it has given me the chance to see the world in ways most people can only dream of.

Some of the greatest gifts in my life were awarded to me through my first flights.

Flying led me to the airport in Philadelphia where I met my wife. Flying has given me lifelong friends. And flying has provided me the opportunity to see the world in ways most people can only dream of.